03.15.12_Mom's Matzo Ball Soup

Phillip hasn't been feeling well the past couple of days. My mom commented on his Facebook status telling him I should make him Matzo Ball soup (aka the Jewish Penicillin). I realized I had never actually made it before which kind of surprised me. Phillip really liked the idea, so I decided it would be a good time to try it. I looked up some recipes online and then decided I would just ask my Mom how she typically makes it. Her email response was as follows:

• chicken pieces (any that are on sale...Grandma insists that Kosher chickens make the best soup, but I have never had that as an option)
• celery (with leafy part)
• carrots
• onion
• water
• lots 'o salt

Bring to boil and let simmer for ~an hour. Take out the celery and onion...leave the carrot.

Pull chicken meat off bones. I use the Manischewitz matzo ball mix.  Do NOT make the matzo balls in the soup. Make them in a separate pot of water...then add to soup. And, I use the really, really skinny egg noodles.

The email even included two pictures she found online of the Manischewitz matzo ball mix she uses and the type of egg noodles. Seemed easy enough. I only made a few modifications because I wanted it to taste just like home, but I also wanted it to be vegetarian. We obviously omitted the chicken and instead of using water I subbed vegetable stock to make up for the flavor I may have been losing for leaving out the chicken.

I added three 32oz boxes of veggie stock, two stalks of celery roughly chopped, an onion quartered, and two carrots thinly sliced into my big stock pot. I brought to a boil, added some salt and pepper, then lowered the temp to low and simmered for an hour. I decided to follow my Mom's recommendation and use the help from the store on the matzo balls. I used the same box mix she uses rather than make them from scratch, which quite honestly, they taste so good out of the box I didn't care. You have to refrigerate the matzo ball mix for 20 minutes before you form the balls.  While the mix was in the fridge, I scooped out the onion and celery from the stock with a slotted spoon.

Next, I divided the matzo ball mix into twelve 1" diameter balls. They looked so small but my mom ensured me they would puff up. I followed her instructions and cooked them in a separate pot of water.  After you drop the matzo balls into the boiling water, you cover, reduce heat, and simmer for twenty minutes. Last thing to do was drop the egg noodles into the soup, let them boil for about six minutes and dinner was ready. It was just like the soup my Mom always makes. Nothing beats a recipe from your childhood. I honestly did not miss the chicken at all and of course, Phillip felt instantly better from my magical Matzo Ball soup.

03.08.11_Sweet Potato Kale Pizza

Caitlin and I have decided we are going to start trying to have a vegan "date night" every month where we can cook together or go out and try a new (or not so new) vegan-friendly restaurant. This month we decided to try and make this Sweet Potato Kale pizza that I had found a recipe for a while back and had sent to Caitlin as a must try. I love all of these things. I love sweet potatoes. I love kale. I love pizza. And I love onions. There was no way this could be bad.

While I sat in traffic attempting to get to Caitlin's apartment during rush hour on a Thursday, she ran to the store and got all the ingredients. The recipe called for:

• 4 small sweet potatoes
• 3 tablespoons milk
• 1 tablespoon fresh sage leaves, finely chopped
• ½ tablespoon butter
• 2 shallots, sliced
• ½ bunch of kale, ripped into bite-sized pieces
• 1 ½ freshly grated Parmesan cheese, or to taste
• Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
• Whole wheat pizza dough

We made a few modifications to make it vegan such as using EVOO instead of butter, using soy instead of regular milk, and for the cheese, we only sprinkled Parmesan vegan substitute on top. We also cheated to save time and instead of making our own dough, used store bought dough from Whole Foods.

Once I finally made it to Caitlin's, she had already cooked the sweet potatoes in the microwave and the ingredients were all prepped. I spread out the dough on a oiled pizza pan. We quickly discovered that if the dough is cold, it will not stay stretched out. We then baked the crust by itself for a several minutes until it was slightly browned. While that was baking, I sauteed the kale and shallots in some EVOO while Caitlin mixed the sweet potatoes, soy milk, and sage. Once the crust was ready, we spread out the sweet potato mixture, top with the sauteed kale and shallots, then sprinkled Caitlin's mystery Parmesan vegan substitute on top for a little extra flavor. The pizza went back into the oven for about 10 minutes and it was time to eat.

This pizza was amazing. I scarfed down my half in record time. The recipe made enough toppings and sauce to cover two crusts so we ended up baking the second so Caitlin would have leftovers for lunch. I highly recommend trying this and will definitely be making it again. So good.

02.22.12_Mole Baked Tofu

When I was first flipping through the Moosewood cookbook, I saw several recipes for baked tofu. I had never thought of baking tofu. One that stood out the most was a Mole Baked Tofu. I looked at their recipe and it seemed very authentic. We went to the store with high hopes of finding all the different peppers and dried chilies we would need, but of course to no luck. I quickly used my iPhone to look up a different Mole recipe that was made up of all basic ingredients and decided it would have to do. One major difference was that the mole sauce recipe I found online had chocolate in it while the one in Moosewood did not.

When I got home from work I drained the tofu and pressed it while I made the mole sauce. Making the sauce was not nearly as intimidating as expected. Add one cup of diced onion and 3 tablespoons of minced garlic to a large sauce pot with 3 TBSP olive oil, 1 tsp dried oregano, 1 tsp cumin, and 1/4 tsp of cinnamon. Cook for about 10 minutes, until the onion is tender. Then add in 3 TBSP flour and 2.5 TBSP chili powder. Slowly whisk in stock (we used veggie instead of chicken) and increase the heat to medium-high. Let the sauce boil and simmer for about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally until it reduces. Remove from the heat and whisk in 2oz of chocolate.

Once the sauce was ready, I sliced each block of tofu into 12 triangles, and put them into a baking dish. I then poured the mole sauce over top of the tofu and put into a 375° oven for an hour. I occasionally pulled out the dish and gave the mole sauce a little stir. After an hour we served the baked tofu with a side of Mexican rice and homemade guacamole.

The mole sauce was SUPER chocolaty and sweet. I do not think I would use the Special Dark next time because it added sweetness that you don't normally find in a mole sauce. It was also missing spice. I definitely want to try a different recipe for mole and see if we can get a more authentic taste. I also want to try baking the tofu again, maybe marinate the tofu for a bit first to absorb flavor before baking. Not a terrible first attempt at mole though!

02.17.12_Chickpea Gnocchi Peperonata

I had had this recipe for Chickpea Gnocchi Peperonata on our recipe list since we started the blog back in August. For some reason we kept pushing it off until I finally decided it was time. After having a somewhat successful first attempt at gnocchi when I made Gnocchi with Thyme Butter I thought I would give this a shot. Unfortunately, the blog that had the original recipe was in French, so I had to do the best I could with Google Translate. I had to convert from metric and some of the translation just made no sense so this was a bit of a struggle.

Basically for this recipe all I had to do was mix a cup of chickpeas with 2 eggs and salt in the food processor. After it was smooth, I added the wet ingredients to the flour. I kneaded the dough, then let it sit for an hour in the fridge, covered. While the gnocchi dough was resting, I did all the prep work. I diced a red, green, and yellow bell pepper, a red onion, and a tomato. The recipe called for friarelli peppers, which I believe in America are banana peppers, so I left them out because I do not like their flavor and subbed the green bell pepper instead. I sauteed the peppers and onions then added a 1/4 TBSP of water to the mix and simmered for about 20 minutes. Next, I added the tomato, raisins, and leftover chickpeas. I cooked the mixture for another 10-15 minutes and then set aside when it was done.

Once the dough had sit for an hour, I cut it into four equal parts and rolled them out into long ropes. I marked the dough with a fork to create ridges then cut the ropes into inch long pieces. I dropped the gnocchi into boiling water and after the rose to the top of the water, let it cook for another 2-3 minutes before taking it out. I then tossed the hot gnocchi with the peperonata and it was ready to eat!

The gnocchi came out really tough for this recipe. I'm not sure if I didn't follow the recipe exactly or if parts of the steps were just lost in translation but it was not light and pillowy like my last gnocchi. I compared recipes and there was a lot more flour in this recipe so I'm not sure if that was it. I was worried about the flavor of the peperonata but it was actually delicious. The raisins seemed like an odd addition when reading the recipe but they gave a nice sweetness to the dish. 

02.12.12_Soft Pretzel Bites and Kale Chips

Several weeks ago a picture of soft pretzel bites appeared on my Google Reader and I died. As a kid one of my all time favorite snacks were these soft pretzel bites that had cheese in the middle. They always remind me of summer and I would eat an entire box in one sitting. When I saw the post for Soft Pretzel Bites and Cheese Dipping sauce I knew I would have to make this. I originally thought that the Super Bowl would be a good venue but our friend Amanda had already planned on making them (what are the chances?!) so I decided to hold off. After another week of waiting I decided I could not wait anymore. I decided that the Grammys would be a perfect excuse to stuff my face with them. Phillip also wanted to make something for our exclusive viewing party and smartly decided to use the leftover kale from our ginormous bag we had bought for the Mac and Cheese Style Cauliflower and Sauteed Kale to make kale chips.

The pretzel dough recipe called for:

* 1 1/2 cups warm
* 1 tbsp sugar
* 2 tsp kosher salt
* 2 1/4 tsp instant yeast
* 22 ounces all-purpose flour, approximately 4 1/2 cups
* 2 ounces unsalted butter, melted
* Vegetable oil

I do not have a fancy Kitchen Aid mixer with a dough attachment so I had to tackle this by hand. After combining all the ingredients, I kneaded the dough for a few minutes before placing the dough in an oiled bowl and covering to let rise for a little under an hour. As the hour came to a close, I preheated the oven to 425° and put 10 cups of water and 2/3 cup of baking soda into a large pot. As I waited for the water to boil I prepared the pretzel bites. I had to divide the dough into eight equal parts, then roll them onto into long ropes (it looked identical to when I made the Homemade Gnocchi). Then I cut the ropes into inch long pieces and covered them with a wet paper towel to prevent them from drying.

Once the water was boiling, I dropped a spoonful of the pretzel bites into the pot. I was worried they would all stick together as I piled them up onto the spoon but with a quick stir they all separated. I stirred constantly, helping the bites flip over within the water, and after 30 seconds, removed with a slotted spoon, drained, and put onto a parchment lined baking sheet. I repeated this until they were all boiled. While I finished boiling the bites, Phillip melted 2 Tbsp of butter and brushed each bite with the butter before sprinkling with salt. We then baked them for about 12 minutes and then were nice and brown.

As the bites were baking I made the cheese sauce. It was just your classic sauce like if you were to make homemade mac and cheese. Melt 2 tbsp butter, whisk in 2 tbsp of flour and cook for about 30 seconds. Then slowly whisk in a cup of milk. After the sauce has thickened, add 2 cups of shredded cheddar, then season with some S&P. These pretzels were AMAZING. The recipe made two full baking sheets of bites and Phillip and I ate an entire baking sheet in one sitting. So. Good. It took a lot of self control not to keep eating them. We were so excited to eat them we forgot to take a picture of them in the bowl with the cheese sauce. Whoops.

For the kale chips, Phillip put the oven to 275°, then lined the baking sheets with foil. We took out any of the stems and then spread out the kale on the baking sheets. He drizzled the kale with some EVOO then we salted and decided to add some red pepper flakes for a bit of a kick. They baked for 20 minutes and Phillip flipped them about half way through. I was a little skeptical about these but they were delicious and could not have been easier, even though they did not photograph well.

02.12.12_Asparagus and Lemon Pasta

Our friend Laura bought us the Moosewood Restaurant: New Classics cookbook as housewarming gift when we moved into our new apartment. I finally sat down and flipped through it this weekend and found a ton of recipes that I can't wait to try. Phillip and I were originally going to grab carryout for dinner but as it got colder and colder outside, I decided I would much rather stay inside and whip up something easy than endure the (finally) winter weather for food. One of the recipes I had earmarked in the book was Pasta with Asparagus and Lemon. Without really reading the recipe I knew that this could not be difficult and that I would love it.

As I brought a large pot of water to a boil, I cut off the tough ends of a bunch of asparagus then trimmed off the asparagus tops by cutting the top inch or so off. Then I chopped the stalks of asparagus into small pieces. After the water was boiling, I dropped in just the tops and blanched them for 3-4 minutes. After removing the tops with a slotted spoon, I added the chopped stalks. I let these cook for 6-7 minutes before removing them.

Next, I added a lb of penne pasta to the boiling water and let that cook while I prepared the sauce. I got to use my mini Cuisinart again which I hadn't used in a while now that I have the full-sized one. I added 1/4 cup olive oil, 1/4 fresh lemon juice, the cooked asparagus stalks, a TBSP or so of the hot cooking water and S&P into the Cuisinart and gave it a whirl. Once all the pieces were mixed and the sauce was smooth it was ready.

I drained the pasta, tossed it with the asparagus lemon sauce, and added in 1/4 of Pecorino Romano cheese. I also topped the pasta with some fresh parsley for some added color and little extra flavor. The pasta was super delicious and as expected ridiculous easy and quick to prepare. I think I'll be making this again when I'm feeling lazy. Thanks Laura for the great cookbook!

02.09.12_Cauliflower Mac and Cheese and Sauteed Kale

I realize that regular Mac and Cheese is vegetarian but what fun is that. I saw this post for Mac and Cheese Style cauliflower that was served as a side and thought it would be great to take this recipe and adapt it to be a main course. Who can say no to a baked casserole dish of cheddar cheese?! I did not increase the size of the dish since it already called for an entire head of cauliflower but did make some adjustments to make it feel like more of an entree.  My modified recipe used:

1 large head cauliflower cut into medium floret
1 cup broccoli (we had some in the freezer so I decided to add it in)
2 Tbsp butter (I used Country Crock)
3 Tbsp all purpose flour
2 cups low fat milk
1 clove garlic, minced
1.5 cups grated sharp cheddar cheese
1 pinch cayenne pepper
1/8 tsp of nutmeg
2 egg yolks
1/2 panko bread crumbs
1/4 cup Pecorino Romano cheese
Parsley (for garnish)

First, I cooked the cauliflower in a pot of boiling water for 5 minutes. At the very end I dropped the cup of frozen broccoli into the pot just to defrost it. After reserving a cup of the water, I drained the cauliflower and broccoli and set aside. Then in the same pot, I melted the butter and whisked in the flour. I was a little worried because it was clumpy but after adding the cooking water, milk, and garlic, the clumps went away as I whisked for the next 10 minutes. Once the sauce thickened, I added the cheese. Before adding the eggs, I tempered them with some of the sauce to make sure I didn't end up with scrambled eggs in the cheese sauce. Finally, I grated some fresh nutmeg into the sauce and added the pinch of cayenne. I folded the cauliflower and broccoli into the cheese sauce, poured in a baking dish I had sprayed with cooking spray, and put the dish into a 350° oven.

While the cauliflower cooked I moved onto making our side dish, sauteed kale. I've never cooked with kale because the amount of fresh kale you need to get several servings is insane. I felt pretty ridiculous walking out of the grocery store with a 2lb bag of kale that was literally the size of my chest. I followed Bobby Flay's recipe for this. I quickly sauteed 2 cloves of garlic in 3 tablespoons of olive oil until soft before adding 1/2 cup of veggie stock. Then it was time for the kale. This was a sight to see. My largest sauce pot was apparently not big enough so I had to add the kale in small batches, tossing the kale with tongs constantly until it had wilted enough to add more. We used 1.5lbs like the recipe called for and by the time it was all cooked down it made about 4-5 servings. We finished the kale with 2 tablespoons of red wine vinegar, salt and pepper.

Back to the cauliflower! After 30 minutes, I it out of the oven and was discouraged by the amount of liquid in the dish. I ended up draining a couple of ladles full of the sauce so it wouldn't be so runny. I think the head of cauliflower I bought must have been to small. Luckily, I was adding panko to the top so it worked out great. I sprinkled the panko bread crumbs and Pecorino Romano cheese across the entire dish then stuck the baking dish under the broiler for a few minutes until it was golden brown. I topped the dish with some fresh parsley and voila! It came out great. The panko made it a lot less runny and made it feel like a main course. The kale was super delicious and went great on the side. I would definitely make this again. So good! I'm excited for leftovers tomorrow! 

02.03.12_Thai Quinoa Chili

Ever since Phillip and I made the Butternut Coconut Stew, I have been on the look out for another recipe that we could use quinoa in since we barely used half the bag last time. I came across a similar dish, Thai Quinoa Chili and thought it would be another easy, tasty dish that would be good for the winter months. The recipe called for:

• 1 tablespoon chili powder
• 1 1/2 teaspoon red curry paste
• 1 tablespoon cumin
• 4 cups vegetable broth, divided
• 1 small onion, diced
• 1 large green pepper, diced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 small sweet potato, peeled and diced
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 3 cans dark red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
• 3/4 cup dry quinoa, rinsed
• 1/2 cup light coconut milk
• 1-28 ounce can crushed tomatoes
• Salt and pepper, to taste
• Sliced green onions, for serving (I omitted these for Phillip)
• Plain Greek yogurt, for serving (omit to make the dish vegan)

After reading through the list I thought 3 cans of beans was a lot, as was a 28oz can of crushed tomatoes, but we rationalized that all the beans would take the place of the meat that was typically in chili.

As always, this recipe could not have been easier. I whisked together the chili powder, curry paste, cumin and a few tablespoons of stock in my largest soup pot. I then added a little olive oil before dropping in the sweet potato, onion, green pepper and garlic. I also added one Thai chili to give a little kick. Make sure you wash your hands good and several times after using these bad boys. They are hot! After sauteing for a few minutes, I dumped in the drained kidney beans, the quinoa, and the can of tomatoes. Finally, I added the coconut milk and remainder of the veggie stock, praying it would all fit. It was literally filled to the brim. Needless to say this recipe made an ABSURD amount of chili. We ended up freezing half of it and the other half was more than enough for both of our dinners and lunches for another day so I'd definitely recommend halving this recipe if its just for two people.

The chili was delicious but I was a little disappointed that I couldn't taste the coconut milk. It was very subtle, maybe because it called for light? I definitely was hoping for more of a Thai flavor. I topped my bowl with a dollop of Greek yogurt which added a nice tang to the chili that I really liked. Obviously you can omit this and the dish would be vegan.

On the side we decided we would make cornbread, but I wanted to change it up a bit to go with the Thai flavors I was expecting with the chili. I used the box mix, but added 1/4cup of frozen corn kernels, a Thai chili, and instead of 1/4cup of milk, I did half milk half coconut milk. Again, I didn't get as much coconut as I wanted so if I were to make these again I would use all coconut milk to get more of the flavor. The Thai chili gave a nice kick though and the corn added texture to the muffins. Cornbread mixes are not vegan, FYI, so if you did want to make this a vegan meal you would have to make these without the box.

01.31.12_(Not so) Drunken Noodles

Ok so this recipe is nothing like Drunken Noodles, rather noodles I made drunk the other day. I'm so clever, I know. Phillip and I decided to take advantage of the unseasonably warm weather on Tuesday and go to a Happy Hour where we could sit outside and have a drink after work. By the time we got home I did not want to make some elaborate dish. I had found this recipe for Fiery Noodles that basically consisted of noodles, peppers, and a sauce made from chili paste. We thought this would be a good day to try them since it would be quick and require very little knife work after a couple of drinks.

As always we decided we wanted leftovers so we used an entire pound of pasta. While waiting for the water to boil, I sliced two bell peppers (we used a yellow and a red) and minced two cloves of garlic. Next I made the sauce, following the recipe I had found. I looked at the amount of sauce, looked at the pound of pasta boiling, and knew there was no way it was going to be enough. Our sauce was also not nearly as red as the pictures from the recipe post. I decided it was time to just improvise and see how it turned out. I ended up adding Sriracha and adjusted the amounts of all the other ingredients until I was satisfied with the amount and flavor of the sauce.

In the end I used:

• 1/4 cup of soy sauce
• 2 Tbsp rice wine vinegar
• 2 tsp roasted red chili paste
• 2 tsp Sriracha
• 1/4 tsp of red chili flakes
• 1/4 cup chopped peanuts (for garnish)
• cilantro (for garnish)

The noodles were super tasty and we had a ton of leftovers (as expected). We served the noodles with veggie dumplings I had in the freezer. Obviously not a groundbreaking recipe but a tasty, quick and easy one to keep in your arsenal for an easy (drunk) weekday meal.

01.29.11_Homemade Spaghetti-O's

Hello again! Phil here with another yummy vegetarian dish for you all. Jonathan found this lovely Spaghetti-O's recipe from the blog Tracey's Culinary Adventures last week, and we knew this one would be a winner. I can't speak for Jonathan, but I am a huge Spaghetti-O's fan, which is why we decided I would take the initiative on this one.

If you recall from my last post, I am not the world's best cook, but with Jonathan across from me in new (large!) kitchen, I figured I could handle it. It's important to note that we made mini-sized version of the eggplant meatballs from a previous post as opposed to her chicken ones to make the meal fully vegetarian.

Mini "meatballs" ready to go into the oven.

After chopping an onion, a stalk of celery, and three small carrots, I sauteed them in a large pot. While they were sauteing, I (poorly) minced three cloves of garlic and added it in. I mixed in 2 1/2 cups of veggie stock and a 28-ounce can of diced tomatoes then simmered the mixture for 20 minutes.

Anybody can cook!

After the carrots softened, I used Jonathan's new immersion blender to make the soup. It took a few minutes of dealing with rogue carrots, but we could really see that creamy orange color coming out of the mixture. I added some salt and pepper and brought the soup back up to a boil.

I have no idea what I'm doing, clearly.

Once the soup mixture was at a boil, I put in two cups of ditalini pasta and let simmer for another 15 minutes. I used a little bit more pasta than she recommended, so we'd have enough for the next day's lunch. The mini meatballs came out at around the same time and looked perfect! Not bad for my first time working with eggplant.

I'm actually surprised with how much it tasted like Spaghetti-O's from the can, though this was much healthier! We both loved the meal and enjoyed it again the next day for lunch. We definitely recommend giving it a try if you're in the mood for a nostalgic meal - without all the sodium!

01.25.12_Kung Pao Potatoes

I was really excited when I found this recipe that took frozen french fries and added them to an Asian stir-fry. I love french fries. I love Asian food. Sounds perfect. The shopping list was super short for this recipe as well since I had almost all of the ingredients in the house except the fresh produce and the fries.

While the rice was cooking in the rice cooker (we used brown rice because it's what we had) we cooked the fries like you normally would in the oven. As the fries were cooking I did all the prep work. All I had to do was cut up a red onion, a red bell pepper, and mince some garlic and ginger. I also went ahead and made the sauce that consisted of water, soy sauce, vinegar, cornstarch (the recipe calls for cornflour), ketchup, chili sauce, and sugar. We left out the red chilies because I didn't have any and decided to add some extra chili flakes to the stir-fry to make up for it. Once the fries were cooked, I threw the garlic, ginger, onion, bell pepper, and chili flakes into a skillet with some oil. After a few minutes I added the the sauce and fries, brought to a boil and simmered for a few minutes.

We forgot to top the Kung Pao Potatoes with peanuts which I did not even realize until right now. I also just realized that the recipe called for sesame oil, which I did not use. Sad. We also served edamame on the side for some veggies. Perhaps the fact that we botched the recipe pretty badly is why we were both underwhelmed by the recipe. The sauce didn't have as much flavor as I hoped but it was fine (perhaps because I didn't have the red chilies and forgot to use sesame oil?). I also realized as I was making it that it was a starch on top of another starch. I think if I were to change the recipe a bit I would use tofu instead of potatoes to remove one of the starches, and I would change the ratio of the ingredients in the sauce so it was a bit more flavorful and less watery. At least the recipe was super easy!

01.22.12_Homemade Hummus and Tzatziki

A while back my grandma had called me from the grocery store. She was thinking about buying the mix to make falafel after having read it on our blog. I told her it was incredibly easy, and would be just like making latkes so she should definitely try it. She ended up buying the mix and a can of tahini paste. A month or so later, I saw her at a family function and she told me she had something for me. She pulled out the falafel mix and tahini paste and told me that she chickened out and wasn't going to make it so I could have it.

After Phillip and I moved, I wanted to have her over for dinner. Her and my Zayde apparently had one of their first dates right next door to our apartment so I thought it would be nice for her to see the area again and would give me a chance to make the falafel for her and show her how easy it is. Since she had given me the tahini, I also decided to make homemade hummus for the first time. After googling for recipes for a while, I found a recipe for a classic hummus that had great reviews.

I decided to double the recipe because Phillip and I love hummus and thought it would be nice to have some leftovers. I did one batch at a time and I'm glad we did because after making the first batch, using the modifications the author of the recipe recommended, the hummus came out pretty runny. I was able to make some changes when I added the second can of chickpeas and the final product came out great. We used:

• 3 cloves garlic
• 2 cans garbanzo beans, 1/2 cup liquid reserved
• 3 tablespoons lemon juice
• 4 tablespoons tahini
• 2 teaspoon salt

I mixed all of the ingredients in my new full sized food processor I got for the holidays (very exciting I know) and then garnished the hummus with a few whole chickpeas, pine nuts I had on hand, a dusting of cumin and parsley, and then before serving drizzled the top with good olive oil (how Ina Garten of me). The hummus was super delicious and was a good texture. I would definitely make it again.

To go along with the falafel, I made the cucumber tomato salad I made from our first blog post ever and also wanted to make a real tzatziki sauce for dipping. I found a lot of recipes that were all a little different so ended up choosing the recipe with the highest ratings. The only changes I made was using white wine vinegar (I didn't have red at home), using half a cucumber (so I could use the other half in the salad) and I added a tablespoon of fresh lemon juice. I got to use another new toy and grated the cucumber on my mandolin! This is what the recipe looked like after my modifications:

• 2 8oz Greek-style yogurts
• 1/2 English cucumber, peeled, grated, then squeezed to remove excess water
• 3 garlic cloves , mashed to a paste
• 1/3 cup olive oil
• 1 tablespoon white wine vinegar 
• 1 tablespoon minced fresh dill
• salt
   

The recipe made a TON of tzatziki. Luckily my mom loves the stuff and took an entire Tupperware container of leftovers home with her. The meal turned out great and I was able to make everything in advance so that when Grandma and Mom came over I didn't have to do anything. A great Sunday night.

01.13.12_Roasted Chickpea Fajitas

I don't know if all vegetarians eat a lot of chickpeas, or if it's just us. I feel like chickpeas have been the most repeated ingredient in our blog. Maybe it's just because we both like them. Who knows. Regardless, I found a recipe for Roasted Chickpea Fajitas and added to the list of things to try.

Super simple as always, all we had to do was mix together:

2 teaspoons chili powder
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon onion powder
1 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
2 tablespoons water
1 (15 oz.) can of chickpeas, drained and rinsed

Then we put the chickpeas into a 400° oven for 25-30 minutes, stirring once halfway through. While the chickpeas were roasting, I sauteed onion, garlic, and two bell peppers (we used orange and yellow) in some EVOO. After a couple of minutes I added in another mixture that consisted of the following:

1 tablespoon chili powder
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon oregano
Salt and pepper, to taste
Juice of 1 large lime
1/3 cup chopped cilantro


After the chickpeas were done roasting, I added them to the veggie mixture, tossed everything together, and dinner was ready! We served the fajitas with veggie refried beans and also a boxed Mexican rice mixture. I topped my fajita was sour cream, cheese, avocado and salsa. The fajitas were super filling and I didn't miss the meat!

01.08.12_Slow Cooker Lentil Taco Salads

Happy New Year! This winter I am making a conscious effort to use my crock pot more. Every time I use it I love that I literally had to cut stuff up and then I come back 6 hours later to a warm, delicious meal. On Sunday we planned on painting our bedroom so I thought that would be a good time to throw something in the crock pot and not have to deal with it. I had found this recipe for Lentil Taco salads that you make in the slow cooker so I was excited to try it since I had never made lentils before.

The recipe called for:

1 red pepper, coarsely chopped
1 medium onion, chopped
1 cup brown lentils
½ cup brown rice
1 garlic clove
2 teaspoons chili powder
¼ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon dried oregano
¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
4 cups vegetable broth

When I went shopping for the ingredients it was right after New Years and shelves were barren. The red peppers looked a hot mess so I grabbed one of the only orange peppers instead. Lentils were hard to come by as well. I found black lentils, instead of brown. I did a little research later of the difference between brown, green, and red lentils but I still don't really know the difference. Something to do with the texture after they are cooked. I assumed that after cooking for 6 hours they would all end up about the same. Luckily, the black lentils worked out just fine.

After prepping the pepper, onion, and garlic, I put all the ingredients into the crock pot, turned it on high, and left it there for 6 hours while we painted and did stuff around the apt. When we were ready for dinner we crunched up some tortilla chips, then topped the chips with shredded lettuce and then the lentil mixture. I added salsa, fresh diced tomato, avocado, cheese and sour cream to mine while Phillip just added cheese and avocado. It was really really good. Phillip kept going back for more which is always a good sign. There was enough for us to have leftovers today too!